[rslorenz]

Hey guys new to the forum, Thank you in advance for your help. My father in law just bought a restored 34 ford coupe with the usual upgrades... mustang 2 suspension, posi 9 inch rear, muncie 4 speed, and chevy 350 motor with a holley carb. Has a really nice aluminum radiator and a flex a lite fan with a good water pump and clean coolant. When she sits at idle for a minute or two the temperature creeps up and up. Coolant is completely burped out. Put in a new mr. gasket thermostat and cap tested fine with my tester. Timing is correct. vaccuum is great. Carb is tuned correctly, not lean at all. Being a new school mechanic I haven't really dealt with these problems on older cars. Yes I know I'm spoiled by my computers telling me where the problem is at... So no need to tell me. I admit it.
I don't think its getting enough air flow to the engine. so we are going to wrap the headers to start by cutting out some of the heat. I was even thinking a fan shroud would be a good idea.The only one I can think of would be a universal type. I'm sure there has been plenty of you guys that ran into this problem. Any insights or ideas are greatly appreciated.

[poncho62]

The fan shroud is your best bet.....not enough air flow through the rad when the car is stopped....The shroud will improve that

[h0trod]

Originally Posted by poncho62

The fan shroud is your best bet.....not enough air flow through the rad when the car is stopped....The shroud will improve that

take this mans advice. had the same problem on my 30 olds.
a shroud fixed it all

[eloc431962]

X3 on the fan shroud and invest in a cool looking puke can while your at it.
i don't exactly which flex fan you have but not all of them are good ones also. But there are a few out there i can't remember i got one from jegs it was a good strong fan alot of air and that's when i went with a shroud and a nice looking puke can get one that can recirculate or if you like you cna go the other way with just the resovior catch can with the drain in the bottom, i like the recircirculate myself.. JMO


Cole

[bygddy]

Originally Posted by rslorenz

Hey guys new to the forum, Thank you in advance for your help. My father in law just bought a restored 34 ford coupe with the usual upgrades... mustang 2 suspension, posi 9 inch rear, muncie 4 speed, and chevy 350 motor with a holley carb. Has a really nice aluminum radiator and a flex a lite fan with a good water pump and clean coolant. When she sits at idle for a minute or two the temperature creeps up and up. Coolant is completely burped out. Put in a new mr. gasket thermostat and cap tested fine with my tester. Timing is correct. vaccuum is great. Carb is tuned correctly, not lean at all. Being a new school mechanic I haven't really dealt with these problems on older cars. Yes I know I'm spoiled by my computers telling me where the problem is at... So no need to tell me. I admit it.
I don't think its getting enough air flow to the engine. so we are going to wrap the headers to start by cutting out some of the heat. I was even thinking a fan shroud would be a good idea.The only one I can think of would be a universal type. I'm sure there has been plenty of you guys that ran into this problem. Any insights or ideas are greatly appreciated.

Chased this on my dads 34 chev for a few years, new Rad, etc etc.....went back to a mechanical fan from the elec, and installed a shroud, never gets hotter then 200 on the worst days

Fans & Fan Shrouds by Walker Radiator Works

[sedanbob]

You mentioned an aluminum rad - I have one from AFCO. They made a shroud for me out of aluminum - did a nice job of it - $100. You can make one yourself cheaper if you have access to a sheet metal brake. If you have someone make one, measure it for height and width of the core (allow for a flange to mount to the sides of the radiator so you can mount it), and where the cutout needs to be for your fan. Also let them know how deep you want it - mine is very shallow 3/4".

[rslorenz]

Thank you guys very much for the information. Ill definitly be looking into a fan shroud. Has anyone tried one of the spectre performance shrouds that are universal? Or do I need to find one that covers the entire radiator? Thanks again

[h0trod]

Originally Posted by rslorenz

Thank you guys very much for the information. Ill definitly be looking into a fan shroud. Has anyone tried one of the spectre performance shrouds that are universal? Or do I need to find one that covers the entire radiator? Thanks again

SPECTRA??!!!!??? <SPITS ON FLOOR> i dont use that crap....

ok mabe there throttle return springs.

[rslorenz]

Lol ok, can you make some suggestions of brands then?

[h0trod]

measure your radiator, and fan and go to speedway motors dot com, they have some decent ones.

i like to modify mid to late 60's gm shrouds. its pretty easy.
for my hotrod, i made one out of .063" aluminum.
i dont have a brake so i made it in 4 pieces and welded it

[68NovaSS]

Griffin for one makes shrouds, and like their site says, they come in many different shapes and sizes, more than what's shown.

http://www.griffinrad.com/fan_shrouds.cfm

Also, give Speedway a look

http://www.speedwaymotors.com/Street...r-Shrouds.html

[FASTFORD]

Originally Posted by rslorenz

Hey guys new to the forum, Thank you in advance for your help. My father in law just bought a restored 34 ford coupe with the usual upgrades... mustang 2 suspension, posi 9 inch rear, muncie 4 speed, and chevy 350 motor with a holley carb. Has a really nice aluminum radiator and a flex a lite fan with a good water pump and clean coolant. When she sits at idle for a minute or two the temperature creeps up and up. Coolant is completely burped out. Put in a new mr. gasket thermostat and cap tested fine with my tester. Timing is correct. vaccuum is great. Carb is tuned correctly, not lean at all. Being a new school mechanic I haven't really dealt with these problems on older cars. Yes I know I'm spoiled by my computers telling me where the problem is at... So no need to tell me. I admit it.
I don't think its getting enough air flow to the engine. so we are going to wrap the headers to start by cutting out some of the heat. I was even thinking a fan shroud would be a good idea.The only one I can think of would be a universal type. I'm sure there has been plenty of you guys that ran into this problem. Any insights or ideas are greatly appreciated.

forget the header wrap, it will not cure the overheating.

as stated by others a fan shroud will definately help. one thing a old rodder told me when I had similar problem is the size of the mechanical fan. if the radiator is 16" wide you need a 14" or 15" diameter fan. the fan needs to be almost as big as the radiator to move enough air through at low speeds.
the shroud is essential for proper air flow.

[sedanbob]

The shroud should cover the entire core. The radiator in your '34 is a fairly common size - some one makes a shroud for it, but maybe not with the fan located where you need it - that's why I suggested AFCO making you a custom one. Make a cardboard mock-up of what you need - a local shop can probably fab you one pretty easily.

[1Gary]

If the shroud doesn't get it,it should,one of the best electric fans going out there is one from a pick and pull Ford Crown Vic 14" fan.It moves tons of air.The downside is you must run the relays that come on them.They draw a boat load of power to run them.